Charger
The PDA battery charger, known in France simply as “chargeur pour PDA,” is a required component for anyone who owns a pocket PC, unless she or he is willing to very frequently replace disposable batteries. The latter may also present the danger of data loss since a complete lack of power – however latent – is connected to an erasing of stored memory. A charger in and of itself is a very simple device that provides little more than a consistent source of electrical power to a battery for charging.

It is important to note that a PDA charger is brand specific, in other words, only a Palm charger will work on a Palm Pilot. A Blueberry charger will probably not even fit, and vice versa. Granted, the aftermarket manufacturers have begun to copy the most commonly used fittings, and then simply use a standard charger to apply to your PDA. Such a cheap PDA charger will most likely work. Some may actually come with a number of couplings that will permit the user to hook them up to any number of PDAs, no matter what the proprietary plug looks like. It is interesting to note that these kinds of devices are usually for sale in either discount stores that specialize in cheap electronics or cheap knock-offs, or they may actually come from the big box stores that sell a little of everything.

While the use of a discount PDA charger sounds appealing to those who just spent a few hundred dollars on the gadget itself, it is important to understand that the best PDA charger is the one that is specifically manufactured for your model. This does not only apply to the at home charger, but also to the car charger you might be using to keep the PDA humming – this is especially true if it is a PDA phone combination. Once again, the siren song of the generic charger is strong, yet keep in mind that even though one size might fit all – with generic couplings – one size does not necessarily charge all, and you may compromise the effectiveness of your PDA battery simply by trying to save a few dollars. While those who purchased a relatively inexpensive PDA might not consider this an important factor, those who operate partial discharge analysis PDA test equipment will beg to differ, especially when it compromises the kind of data that are being sought.